2 min
Overview
The Pacific shoreline south from the Coos River consists of an upturned marine terrace, once part of a large delta, that now manifests itself as a colorful set of cliffs and islands in vertical ridges of sandstone, siltstone, and shale. This is all part of the 40 million-year-old Coaledo Formation, and the tilted layers are most strikingly observed at Yoakam Point, a 25 ½ acre state natural site just north of Sunset Bay State Park. This is an undeveloped property, purchased in 1969, but a meandering network of user trails attests to decades of local use. Take the trail leading into a woodland of Sitka spruce, waxmyrtle, salal, sedge, evergreen huckleberry, and red huckleberry. Keep left on the main trail, and see a house on your left. At another junction, stay left and pass above a pocket beach where a steep, slippery trail leads down a defile (there’s a rope here to aid your efforts). Emerge at a headland that offers views south to Lighthouse Beach, accessible to the public only by a single trail at its north end; Gregory Point; and Chief’s Island. The Cape Arago Lighthouse, deactivated in 2006, is the sole building on the island. Once part of a Coast Guard reservation, the island now belongs to the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians. Return to the junction near the house, and go left through the salal. Pass above a narrow cove with a waterfall pouring into it. This defile churns and foams with roiling breakers at high tide. The trail meanders through dark spruce and salal woods before swinging back towards the cliffs. Go left at another junction, and head out along a promontory above a narrow abyss to reach Yoakam Point. From here, you’ll get more views to the Cape Arago Lighthouse, the narrow rock ridges of Mussel Reef, Bastendorff Beach, and the Coos River’s South Jetty to the north. Mussel Reef is a smelt spawning ground from May to August. Returning from this viewpoint, keep left as you hike along a clifftop. At one point, a broken rope attached to a spruce shows how s
Trail Stats
0.0 km
9 m
0 m
0 m
—
Photos
400px-YoakamPointMap
400px-YoakamPointMap
250px-Cove_and_Bastendorff_Beach%2C_Yoakam_Point
250px-Cove_and_Bastendorff_Beach%2C_Yoakam_Point
250px-Waterfall_and_cove%2C_Yoakam_Point
250px-Waterfall_and_cove%2C_Yoakam_Point
250px-Chief%27s_Island_from_Yoakam_Point
250px-Chief%27s_Island_from_Yoakam_Point
400px-Narrow_bands_of_tilted_rock%2C_Yoakam_Point
400px-Narrow_bands_of_tilted_rock%2C_Yoakam_Point